Week 2 Draft Takeaways: Chen Goes for a Guard-Heavy Squad
Kaitlyn Chen flew to the top of the leaderboard in Week One of AU Pro Basketball, and as leader of this week’s Gold Rush squad, she isn’t letting her rookie status keep her from a hands-on captain’s approach.
Chen is partnered with coach Zak Buncik and has a clear vision for how she wants her offense run.
“Definitely hands-on. I think as a point guard, I feel like I have ideas of what I want to do with this team, but definitely gonna lean on Zak because, I mean, he knows so much, and he can help me execute everything,” Chen said.
Part of her vision for the team included drafting a guard-heavy roster that includes Bree Hall, Jacy Sheldon, Kia Nurse, Te-Hina Paopao, Bria Hartley, Kiara Leslie, and Rebecca Harris, along with center Kiah Stokes and forward Teana Muldrow.
That ratio of guards to bigs wasn’t an accident. Chen left the draft feeling fully satisfied with her picks.
“I love my team. I think we have a really, really great team. I can’t believe [the other captains] left some of those players there for me to draft in the later rounds,” she said. “I feel like I picked people that I really wanted to play with, like Bree Hall, obviously, and really unselfish players. I feel like we’re gonna move the ball great, and it’s gonna be a lot of fun too.”
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Chen had previously described her Week One Eclipse squad as “so much fun,” noting that “we played so well together, everyone was hyping each other up, we all had each other’s backs.”
Although that Week One Eclipse squad has been scattered across the four Week Two teams, with all four captain spots being occupied by those teammates from the dominant squad, Chen is taking that experience and the influence of Alysha Clark and coach Chaz Franklin’s communication style into her first captain’s assignment.
“[Clark] is such a great captain and leader. I mean, I feel like she did a great job. I knew she was going to, but yeah, definitely want to continue that sort of open communication,” Chen said.
Chen has plans for a spread offense and is banking on her team’s shooting ability. With some of the top three-point shooters from Week One gathered on her roster–Kia Nurse and Bree Hall–that plan is likely to work.
“I think we’ll be good. I feel like we got Kiah (Stokes) and Kia, which will help us, and a lot of young guards that just play hard,” Chen said. “I think just playing spread and playing with each other, moving the ball around a lot, and then just getting really good shots.”
Clark Reunites with Russell
Alysha Clark finished fifth on the leaderboard after Week One but returns to captain the Eclipse in place of Asia Taylor, who finished the week fourth. Taylor’s availability is subject to change due to personal reasons. Clark is paired with coach Kia Vaughn for the Week Two action.
For the second straight week, Clark kicked off the draft with Mercedes Russell as the number one overall pick, a choice that set a strong foundation for her squad last week.
Russell finished Week One with a pair of back-to-back double-figure scoring performances and a 48.3 overall field goal percentage. She finished the week fourth in rebounds with 9.4 per contest. She also ranks fifth in steals and has a defensive game that matches Clark’s on-court priorities.
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Morrow Snatches the Top Week 1 Scorers
In her first AU captain’s assignment, 2025 Connecticut Sun rookie Aneesah Morrow is paired with a familiar face: Coach Chaz Franklin served as head of player development for the Sun last season. The pair added proven scorers to the Rhythm roster for Week Two.
Morrow claimed three of the five top scorers from Week One with Zia Cooke (17.7 ppg), Asia Taylor (16.5 ppg), and Aerial Powers (16.3 ppg). She also claimed the returning 2023 AU champion NaLyssa Smith, who led the Glow to a 2-1 record in Week One while tallying 13.7 points per game and currently boasts a 59.3 field goal percentage.
Morrow, whose success in Week One didn’t come from Win Points alone, was fifth in Stat Points and third in rebounds (9.3 per game) while averaging 14.7 points. She could be poised to lead her team to another week of league-leading numbers.
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Gardner Grabs a Trio of Physical Gamers
Rebekah Gardner made a splash in her AU debut, finishing second on the Week One leaderboard. For her Week Two Glow squad, she and coach Edniesha Curry drafted a group of players who boosted the intensity every time they stepped on the court last week.
For her first pick, Gardner turned to AU veteran and returning runner-up Odyssey Sims, whose physical style of attacking the basket earned her a league-leading 20.7 points per game last week. Next, she claimed Natasha Mack, who dominated the paint and grabbed a league-leading 14 rebounds per game, plus 10.3 points per game.
For her third pick, she claimed Sarah Ashlee Barker, who proved herself as an aggressive playmaker in Week One. She dished out four assists per game–the third-most across the league–and complemented Sims and Dorie Harrison (who she will also be reunited with on this week’s Glow team) well on the Week One Gold Rush squad.
Week 2 Begins Wednesday
Week Two begins on Wednesday, Feb. 11, with a morning game between Rhythm and Glow at 11:30 p.m. ET / 10:30 p.m. CT on ESPN and the ESPN app. Gold Rush and Eclipse will tip off at 8:00 p.m. ET / 7 p.m. CT, also on ESPN and the ESPN app.
Siera Jones is the digital media reporter at Athletes Unlimited. You can follow her on Instagram and X @sieraajones.
